Running specific prostheses (RSP) are designed to replicate the spring-like behaviour of the human leg during running, by incorporating a real physical spring in the prosthesis. Leg stiffness is an important parameter in running as it is strongly related to step frequency and running economy. To be able to select a prosthesis that contributes to the required leg stiffness of the athlete, it needs to be known to what extent the behaviour of the prosthetic leg during running is dominated by the stiffness of the prosthesis or whether it can be regulated by adaptations of the residual joints...

Stretching, either prior to exercise or at the end, or both, is typically carried out by all individuals undertaking sporting activity whether they be elite or recreational athletes. The many forms of stretching available to the athlete, either passive or active, have long been thought to improve performance, decrease injury and generally be advantageous to the athlete. This review examines the current state of the literature and evaluates what athletes can and should do with respect to this controversial topic...

Do animals evolve (coadapt) to choose diets that positively affect their performance abilities? We addressed this question from a microevolutionary perspective by examining preference for Western diet (WD: high in fat and sugar, but lower in protein) versus standard rodent chow in adults of both sexes from 4 lines of mice selectively bred for high levels of voluntary wheel running (High Runner or HR lines) and 4 non-selected control (C) lines. We also assessed whether food preference or substitution affects physical activity (wheel running and/or spontaneous physical activity [SPA] in the attached home cages)...

Metabolic rate appears to increase with rate of force application for running. Leg function during ground contact is similar in hopping and running so one might expect that this relationship would hold for hopping as well. Surprisingly, metabolic rate appeared to decrease with increasing force rate for hopping. However, this paradox is the result of comparing different cross sections of the metabolic cost landscapes for hopping and running. The apparent relationship between metabolic rate and force rate observed in treadmill running is likely not a fundamental characteristic of muscle physiology, but a result of runners responding to speed constraints, i...

The aim of this study was to determine if selected kinematic measures (foot strike index [SI], knee contact angle and overstride angle) were different between aquatic treadmill (ATM) and land treadmill (LTM) running, and to determine if these measures were altered during LTM running as a result of 6 weeks of ATM training. Acute effects were tested using 15 competitive distance runners who completed 1 session of running on each treadmill type at 5 different running speeds. Subsequently, three recreational runners completed 6 weeks of ATM training following a single-subject baseline, intervention and withdrawal experiment...

CONTEXT: Minimalist shoes have been suggested as a way to alter running biomechanics to improve running performance and reduce injuries. However, to date, researchers have only considered the effect of minimalist shoes at slow running speeds. OBJECTIVE: To determine if runners change foot-strike pattern and alter the distribution of mechanical work at the knee and ankle joints when running at a fast speed in minimalist shoes compared with conventional running shoes...

In order to describe the velocity and the anaerobic energy of two runners competing against each other for middle-distance races, we present a mathematical model relying on an optimal control problem for a system of ordinary differential equations. The model is based on energy conservation and on Newton's second law: resistive forces, propulsive forces and variations in the maximal oxygen uptake are taken into account. The interaction between the runners provides a minimum for staying 1 m behind one's competitor...

PURPOSE: The dynamics of speed selection as a function of distance, or pacing, are used in recreational, competitive, and scientific research situations as an indirect measure of the psycho-physiological status of an individual. The purpose of this study was to determine pacing on level, uphill and downhill sections of participants in a long (>80 km) ultramarathon performed on trails in hilly terrain. METHODS: Fifteen ultramarathon runners competed in a 173 km event (five finished at 103 km) carrying a Global-Positioning System (GPS) device...

The purpose of the present study was to investigate appetite-related hormonal responses and energy intake after a 20 km run in trained long distance runners. Twenty-three male long-distance runners completed two trials: either an exercise trial consisting of a 20 km outdoor run (EX) or a control trial with an identical period of rest (CON). Blood samples were collected to determine plasma acylated ghrelin, peptide YY3-36 (PYY3-36) and other hormonal and metabolite concentrations. Energy intake during a buffet test meal was also measured 30 min after the exercise or rest periods...

The aim of the present study was to examine the performance of the world's best runners in 10km, half-marathon, marathon and 100km by age, sex and nationality during 1999-2015 using data from International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). A total of 38,895 runners (17,136 women and 21,759 men) were considered with 2,594 (1,360 women and 1,234 male) in 10km, 11,595 (5,225 women and 6,370 male) in half-marathon, 23,973 (10,208 women and 13,765 male) in marathon and 733 (343 women and 390 male) in 100km...

BACKGROUND: Despite a rapidly growing body of research, a systematic evidence compilation of the risk and protective factors for middle- and long-distance running-related injury (RRI) was lacking. OBJECTIVES: Our objective was to compile the evidence about modifiable and non-modifiable training-related and behavioral risk and protective factors for middle- and long-distance RRI. METHODS: We searched five databases (PubMed, CINAHL, MEDLINE, SPORTDiscus, and PsycINFO) for the dates 1 January 1970 to 31 December 2015, inclusive, for original peer-reviewed articles...

We studied the effects of different types of exercises on the concentrations of oxidised HDL (oxHDLlipids) and LDL lipids (oxLDLlipids), serum lipids, antioxidant potential, paraoxonase and malondialdehyde in endurance runners by performing both a 40-min continuous run (velocity corresponding to 80% VO2max) and a 40-min intermittent run (2-min run, velocity corresponding to 100% VO2max, and 2-min rest) using a treadmill. Blood samples were taken before exercise, after 20 and 40 min of exercise, and 15 and 90 min after the end of exercise...

Time perception during exercise may be affected by chosen intensity, and may also affect enjoyment of exercise and subsequent long-term adherence. However, little is known about how individuals perceive the passage of time during exercise, or if factors such as sex are influential. The purpose of this study was to determine if there are sex related differences in perception of time during a bout of exercise in experienced runners. Twenty-two recreational runners (11 men, 11 women) participated in a bout of treadmill running where they were allowed to select their intensity...

Running economy (RE) is considered an important physiological measure for endurance athletes, especially distance runners. This review considers 1) how RE is defined and measured and 2) physiological and biomechanical factors that determine or influence RE. It is difficult to accurately ascertain what is good, average, and poor RE between athletes and studies due to variation in protocols, gas-analysis systems, and data averaging techniques. However, representative RE values for different caliber of male and female runners can be identified from existing literature with mostly clear delineations in oxygen uptake across a range of speeds in moderately and highly trained and elite runners...

The aim of this study was to compare the spatio-temporal parameters of trained runners and untrained participants with the same foot strike pattern (rearfoot) during running at controlled speeds. Twenty-one participants were classified in two groups according to their training experience: Trained (n=10, amateur runners with long distance training experience) and Untrained (n=11, healthy non-trained participants). Anthropometric variables were recorded, and the participants performed both a submaximal (between 9 and 15 km·h) and a graded exercise running test (from 6 km·h until exhaustion) on a treadmill...